İkinci Abdülhamid Döneminde Muhalif Bir Gazete: Beberuhi
A Dissident Newspaper during the Reign of Abdulhamid II: Beberuhi

Author(s): Zeynel Özlü, Mustafa Murat Çay
Subject(s): Media studies, 19th Century, Pre-WW I & WW I (1900 -1919), The Ottoman Empire
Published by: Özgür Yayın Dağıtım Ltd. Şti.
Keywords: Abdulhamid II; newspaper Beberuhi; Ottoman Empire media;
Summary/Abstract: Beberuhi is an Ottoman satirical newspaper that began its publication in Geneva with its first issue on February 1, 1898. Due to its opposition to the Abdulhamid Administration during that period, like other opposition press outlets, it had to continue its publication outside Istanbul. The satirical newspapers in exile, referred to as “hezeyannâme (delirium)” by the Ottoman government and labeled as “erbâb-ı fesad (mischief-makers)" by its owners, constitute extremely important arguments for researchers to gain insights into the opposition currents and influences of the era. The publication life of Beberuhi in Geneva was relatively short-lived. Beberuhi can be described as one of the rare works of Ottoman humor publications. Like other publications that operated outside Istanbul between 1878 and 1908 due to prevailing conditions, Beberuhi also managed to enter Ottoman territories through clandestine means. The newspaper adopted reflecting the views of the Committee of Union and Progress (İttihat ve Terakki Cemiyeti) as its main publishing principle. Considering the general character of the newspaper, its attitude summarized by the concept of "disobedience" is understood to be directed not towards the spiritual power and state identity of the Ottoman Empire (Devlet-i Âl-i Osmânî (State-i Âl-i Osmânî)), but directly towards Sultan Abdulhamid II and his actions. In this study, Beberuhi newspaper, which was known for its opposition ideas during the reign of Abdulhamid II and embraced a form of disobedience against the authority of the era, has been examined. Within the scope of the study, only four issues of Beberuhi could be accessed throughout its short publication life. Based on the available issues of the newspaper, namely the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 5th, the panorama of the Abdulhamid II era is presented from the perspective of an opposition publication.

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